New Measurements of the Beam-Normal Single Spin Asymmetry in Elastic Electron Scattering over a Range of Spin-0 Nuclei.

We report precision determinations of the beam-normal single spin asymmetries (A_{n}) in the elastic scattering of 0.95 and 2.18 GeV electrons off ^{12}C, ^{40}Ca, ^{48}Ca, and ^{208}Pb at very forward angles where the most detailed theoretical calculations have been performed. The first measurements of A_{n} for ^{40}Ca and ^{48}Ca are found to be similar to that of ^{12}C, consistent with expectations and thus demonstrating the validity of theoretical calculations for nuclei with Z≤20. We also report A_{n} for ^{208}Pb at two new momentum transfers (Q^{2}) extending the previous measurement. Our new data confirm the surprising result previously reported, with all three data points showing significant disagreement with the results from the Z≤20 nuclei. These data confirm our basic understanding of the underlying dynamics that govern A_{n} for nuclei containing ≲50 nucleons, but point to the need for further investigation to understand the unusual A_{n} behavior discovered for scattering off ^{208}Pb.

Precision Determination of the Neutral Weak Form Factor of

We report a precise measurement of the parity-violating (PV) asymmetry A_{PV} in the elastic scattering of longitudinally polarized electrons from ^{48}Ca. We measure A_{PV}=2668±106(stat)±40(syst) parts per billion, leading to an extraction of the neutral weak form factor F_{W}(q=0.8733 fm^{-1})=0.1304±0.0052(stat)±0.0020(syst) and the charge minus the weak form factor F_{ch}-F_{W}=0.0277±0.0055. The resulting neutron skin thickness R_{n}-R_{p}=0.121±0.026(exp)±0.024(model) fm is relatively thin yet consistent with many model calculations. The combined CREX and PREX results will have implications for future energy density functional calculations and on the density dependence of the symmetry energy of nuclear matter.

Realizing certainty in an uncertain future climate: modeling suitable areas for conserving wild Citrus species under different change scenarios in India.

Citrus is an important horticultural crop of India and is often prone to diseases, particularly under increased temperature scenarios. For developing disease-resistant Citrus varieties, conservation of wild relatives is extremely important. However, our knowledge on temperature tolerance of these wild relatives of Citrus to varied climate change scenarios is extremely limited. Therefore, we determined the climatic niche of six wild relatives of cultivated Citrus species (C. indica Tanaka, C. karna Rafin., C. latipes (Swingle) Tanaka, C. macroptera Montrouz., C. medica L., and C. sinensis (L.) Osbeck.) and identified the geographical areas in India that would remain climatically stable in future through ecological niche modeling (ENM). Raster data on 19 bioclimatic variables with a resolution of 0.04° were used to generate niche models for each Citrus species that delineated their potential distribution areas. Future species distribution predictions for the year 2050 were made using the climate change scenarios from the most appropriate climate models, i.e., IPSL-CM5A-LR and NIMR-HADGEM2-AO with four Representative Concentration Pathways (RCPs). Ensemble of current and future projections was used to identify climatically stable areas for each species. Precipitation-related bioclimatic variables were the key climatic determinants for the modeled distribution pattern. The consensus of current and future projections suggests that most areas with stable climates for the species in the future would be available in the northeastern states of Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Mizoram, and Tripura. Efforts for in situ conservation and establishment of germplasm banks and citrus orchards may be encouraged in these identified areas.

Accurate Determination of the Neutron Skin Thickness of

We report a precision measurement of the parity-violating asymmetry A_{PV} in the elastic scattering of longitudinally polarized electrons from ^{208}Pb. We measure A_{PV}=550±16(stat)±8(syst) parts per billion, leading to an extraction of the neutral weak form factor F_{W}(Q^{2}=0.00616 GeV^{2})=0.368±0.013. Combined with our previous measurement, the extracted neutron skin thickness is R_{n}-R_{p}=0.283±0.071 fm. The result also yields the first significant direct measurement of the interior weak density of ^{208}Pb: ρ_{W}^{0}=-0.0796±0.0036(exp)±0.0013(theo) fm^{-3} leading to the interior baryon density ρ_{b}^{0}=0.1480±0.0036(exp)±0.0013(theo) fm^{-3}. The measurement accurately constrains the density dependence of the symmetry energy of nuclear matter near saturation density, with implications for the size and composition of neutron stars.

Comparison of Two Entry Methods for Laparoscopic Port Entry.

Background The first step in laparoscopic surgery is to establish the pneumoperitoneum for which many approaches have been introduced to minimize the complications. Although controversies exist regarding the most efficient technique, till now the best entry technique is still unsettled. Objective To compare the safety, operating time and outcome of Direct Trocar Insertion with a well-established and widely practised Open Access Technique. Method This is a prospective study at Nobel Medical College Teaching Hospital from November 2019 to February 2021. Patients were grouped into either of the two groups, Group 1 for Direct Trocar Insertion and Group 2 for Open Access Technique. They were later analysed for major and minor complications of the technique and a comparison of either method was done at the end of the study period. Result A total of 823 patients were enrolled in the study. Among the study population, 411 patients had Direct Trocar Insertion while 412 patients had Open Access Technique. The majority of the operation that was done during the study period was laparoscopic cholecystectomy. Patients in the Open Access Technique group experienced more complications compared to Direct Trocar Insertion group. Conclusion Despite the fear of adopting the Direct Trocar Insertion, this is a safe, better and quick technique for laparoscopic port entry. However, any surgeon practising laparoscopic surgery should be competent to adopt either technique to overcome failure in either process during port entry.

Toothbrush, an Unusual Foreign Body.

Accidental consumption of foreign body is a common presenting complain among patients especially in young age group. Majority of patients can be discharged safely after reassurance while a fraction of patient requires observation and further management. Here we report a case of a 35-year-old gentleman who presented to the out-patient department of our hospital in June 2021 for accidental ingestion of toothbrush. After detailed history and physical examination upper gastrointestinal endoscopy was planned for the patient. Failed endoscopic removal was considered the indication for surgery. A supraumbilical midline incision was used to remove the toothbrush. Following the surgical removal, he was managed conservatively and was discharged without significant complications. We describe this case in detail in addition to reviewing the pertinent literature.

Comparative effectiveness of chemotherapy vs resection of the primary tumour as the initial treatment in older patients with Stage IV colorectal cancer.

AIM: The objectives were to determine trends in the use of chemotherapy as the initial treatment and to evaluate the comparative effectiveness of initial chemotherapy vs resection of the primary tumour on survival (intention-to-treat analysis) in Stage IV colorectal cancer (CRC). METHOD: This cohort study used 2000-2011 data from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER)-Medicare linked database, including patients ≥ 66 years of age presenting with Stage IV CRC. Cox proportional hazards models and instrumental variable analysis were used to compare the effectiveness of chemotherapy as the initial treatment with resection of the primary tumour as the initial treatment, with 2-year survival as the end point. RESULTS: The use of chemotherapy as the first treatment increased over time, from 26.8% in 2001 to 46.9% in 2009 (P < 0.0001). The traditional Cox model showed that chemotherapy as the initial treatment was associated with a higher risk of mortality [hazard ratio (HR) = 1.35; 95% CI: 1.27-1.44]. When accounting for known and unknown confounders in an instrumental variable analysis, chemotherapy as the initial treatment suggested benefit on 2-year survival (HR = 0.68; 95% CI: 0.44-1.04); however, the association did not reach statistical significance. The study findings were similar in six subgroup analyses. CONCLUSION: The use of chemotherapy as the initial therapy for CRC increased substantially from 2001 to 2009. Instrumental variable analysis found that, compared with resection, chemotherapy as the initial treatment offers similar or better 2-year survival in patients with Stage IV CRC. Given the morbidity and mortality associated with colorectal resection in elderly patients, chemotherapy provides an option to patients who are not good candidates for resection.

Degradation of carbazole, dibenzothiophene and polyaromatic hydrocarbons by recombinant Rhodococcus sp.

OBJECTIVES: With the view of designing a single biocatalyst for biorefining, carbazole dioxygenase was cloned from Pseudomonas sp. and expressed in Rhodococcus sp. RESULTS: The recombinant, IGTS8, degraded both carbazole and dibenzothiophene at 400 mg/l in 24 h. Maximum carbazole degradation was in 1:1 (v/v) hexadecane/aqueous phase. Anthracene, phenanthrene, pyrene, fluoranthene and fluorine were also degraded without affecting the aliphatic component. CONCLUSIONS: Recombinant Rhodococcus sp. IGTS8 can function as a single biocatalyst for removing major contaminants of fossil fuels viz. dibenzothiophene, carbazole and polyaromatic compounds.

Disabled women's attendance at community women's groups in rural Nepal.

There is strong evidence that participatory approaches to health and participatory women's groups hold great potential to improve the health of women and children in resource poor settings. It is important to consider if interventions are reaching the most marginalized, and therefore we examined disabled women's participation in women's groups and other community groups in rural Nepal. People with disabilities constitute 15% of the world's population and face high levels of poverty, stigma, social marginalization and unequal access to health resources, and therefore their access to women's groups is particularly important. We used a mixed methods approach to describe attendance in groups among disabled and non-disabled women, considering different types and severities of disability. We found no significant differences in the percentage of women that had ever attended at least one of our women's groups, between non-disabled and disabled women. This was true for women with all severities and types of disability, except physically disabled women who were slightly less likely to have attended. Barriers such as poverty, lack of family support, lack of self-confidence and attendance in many groups prevented women from attending groups. Our findings are particularly significant because disabled people's participation in broader community groups, not focused on disability, has been little studied. We conclude that women's groups are an important way to reach disabled women in resource poor communities. We recommend that disabled persons organizations help to increase awareness of disability issues among organizations running community groups to further increase their effectiveness in reaching disabled women.

High-level expression, purification and characterization of carbazole dioxygenase, a three components dioxygenase, of Pseudomonas GBS.5.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the conversion of carbazole into 2'-aminobiphenyl-2,3-diol using carbazole dioxygenase (CARDO) that is a multicomponent enzyme consisting of homotrimeric terminal oxygenases (CarAa), a ferredoxin (CarAc) and a ferredoxin reductase (CarAd) unit, encoded by the carAa, carAc and carAd genes, respectively. RESULTS: The enzyme subunits containing a GST tag were expressed independently in E. coli. The expressed proteins were purified by one-step immobilized affinity chromatography and three purified proteins could reconstitute the CARDO activity in vitro and showed activity against carbazole as well as against wide range of polyaromatic compounds. CONCLUSION: This method provides an efficient way to obtain an active carbazole dioxygenase with high yield, high purity and with activity against a wide range of polyaromatic compounds.

Optimization of thermodynamic and surface properties of ternary Ti-Al-Si alloy and its sub-binary alloys in molten state.

Thermodynamic and surface properties of the ternary system were studied at different higher temperatures (1973 K, 2073 K, 2173 K and 2273 K). The thermodynamic properties were studied using the Chou, Kohler and Toop models. Meanwhile, the surface properties were investigated using the same models plus the Butler model. The thermodynamic and surface properties of the ternary alloys computed from different models were compared with one another. The surface concentration of the components of the ternary Ti-Al-Si alloy was computed using Butler's equation.

Study of artifacts in thermodynamic and structural properties of Li-Mg alloy in liquid state using linear and exponential models.

Temperature-dependent interaction parameters of Redlich-Kister (R-K) polynomials for Li-Mg alloy in liquid phase have been optimized using experimental data in the framework of linear and exponential models. These parameters have then been used to compute the thermodynamic properties (excess Gibbs free energy of mixing, enthalpy of mixing and activity) and structural property (concentration fluctuations in the long-wavelength limit) of the alloy at temperatures 1000 K, 1300 K, 1600 K, 1900 K, and 2200 K. The negative values of excess Gibbs free energy of mixing computed using linear T-dependent parameters increases with the rise in the temperature of the system beyond 1000 K while the same physical quantity computed using the exponential T-dependent interaction parameters decreases with the rise in temperatures and does not show any unusual trends up to 2200 K. Similar behavior has been found in the case of other thermodynamic and structural functions. The unusual behavior that appears in the thermodynamic and structural functions computed using linear T-dependent parameters can be eliminated if these functions are computed using exponential T-dependent parameters.

Study of surface tension and viscosity of Cu-Fe-Si ternary alloy using a thermodynamic approach.

The surface tension and viscosity of Cu-Fe-Si ternary alloys were computed at different temperatures using thermodynamic approaches. The thermodynamic data of the alloy were optimized in the framework of the Redlich-Kister (R-K) polynomials and exponential temperature dependent coefficients of the R-K polynomial were obtained. These coefficients were used to compute the excess Gibbs free energy of mixing of the alloy and the partial excess free energy of the components. The partial excess free energy so obtained was used to compute the surface tension of the ternary Cu-Fe-Si alloy system and its binary sub-systems. The enthalpy of mixing was also optimized and it was used to compute the viscosity of the sub-binary and ternary alloys.

A study of oxidative stress, antioxidant status and lipid profile in diabetic patient in the western region of Nepal.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: Diabetes mellitus (DM) is often termed as a disease of premature aging. Several studies have indicated lopsided redox balance due to pro oxidant environment as one of the important etiological factors. Some recent researches also indicate a causal relationship with oxidative stress (OS). So far, no study has been undertaken on this aspect in Nepali populations. We, therefore, aimed this maiden study in Nepali population to examine redox balance by measuring OS and antioxidant status along with lipid profile in 37 patients of DM type- 2 and 30 matched normal subjects. METHODOLOGY: Thirty seven patients of DM type-2 without any complications (mean age= 57.6+/- 10.6 years) and 30 normal subjects (mean age= 55.8 +/- 14.8 years) were included in this study. Body Mass Index (BMI) and Waist/Hip (W/H) ratio were measured. Fasting blood sample was collected for the analysis of total antioxidant activity (TAA), plasma and urinary thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) and lipid profile by standard procedures in both the groups. The statistical analysis was done with SPSS 10 version. RESULTS: Total cholesterol, triglyceride, VLDL-cholesterol, LDL-cholesterol, plasma and urinary TBARS were significantly raised whereas, plasma TAA was significantly reduced in DM type-2 patients as compared to controls. The comparison of old and fresh cases revealed that though TAA was lower and PTBARS and UTBARS were higher in patients but did not attain the level of significance. W/H ratio is significantly higher in patients compared to normal subjects. But, no significant correlation of BMI and W/H with lipid profile is observed in both control and patients. CONCLUSION: Oxidative stress is raised in type 2 DM patients. This along with deranged lipid profile and decreased antioxidant status could be the risk factors in the development of complications associated with DM.

An unusual injury from a toothbrush: a case report.

The use of toothbrushes has significantly improved oral hygiene. However, if brushing of the teeth is not done judiciously, it could result in severe trauma to the soft tissues of the oral cavity. This is particularly true in the young age group, since children tend to be very playful while brushing their teeth. This article describes the case report of a child who sustained a penetrating injury while brushing his teeth. A detailed plan for the management of such injuries is also presented.

Cigarette smoke induced oxidative insult in local population of Pokhara.

OBJECTIVES: To assess the effect of cigarette smoking on lipid peroxidation induced oxidative stress, antioxidants, uric acid and blood sugar in normal subjects. METHODS: The study included 61 normal subjects with regular smoking habit and 57 never-smokers normal subjects matched in respect to socio-economic status, age and BMI. Information regarding smoking habit and other personal details were collected by oral questionnaire. Total antioxidant activity (TAA), reduced glutathione (GSH), alpha-tocopherol (alpha-T), ascorbic acid (AA), uric acid (UA), plasma and urinary thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS), fasting blood sugar (FBS) and urinary creatinine (Cr) were estimated by standard procedures in both the groups. Ferric Reducing Antioxidant Power (FRAP) procedure is used to estimate TAA which measures total dietary antioxidants. Statistical analysis was done with SPSS version 10. RESULTS: The mean pack years smoked by smokers was 14.4 +/- 15.8. The plasma TBARS level in smokers and never-smokers was 2.6 +/- 0.8 and 2.5 +/- 0.6 micromol/L respectively. The respective figure for urinary TBARS level was 4.6 +/- 2.7 and 3.7 +/- 1.4 micromol/gmCr. Smokers did not show any significant difference from never-smokers with respect to GSH, alpha-T, AA, plasma TBARS and FBS. However, the smokers had significantly lower levels of TAA (p<0.05) and raised level of urinary TBARS (p<0.05) and uric acid (p<0.01) as compared to never-smokers. CONCLUSION: Our study suggests that smoking induces mild lipid peroxidation but the body is able to compensate for it by removing its adducts. Importantly it also indicates enhanced oxidation of purines which are essential components of both DNA and RNA. Dietary antioxidants are consumed to scavenge free radicals (FR) and other reactive species (RS) in smoke. Female smokers are more prone to oxidative insult than male smokers. In summary RS present in smoke induce mild lipid peroxidation but are not the major contributors of redox imbalance in smoke induced toxicity in the selected subjects.

Role of E2F-1 in chemosensitivity.

The E2F family of transcription factors, in partnership with DP proteins, is thought to regulate transcription of genes that encode protein products that are required for DNA synthesis, which include important cancer chemotherapeutic targets such as thymidylate synthase and dihydrofolate reductase. This study was conducted to investigate the effects of overexpression of human E2F-1 cDNA on chemosensitivity in a human fibrosarcoma cell line, HT-1080. The E2F-1-overexpressing HT-1080 cells had a shorter doubling time both in vitro and in vivo. Associated with an up-regulation of TS, E2F-1-transfected cells were more resistant to 5-fluorouracil than were untransfected cells. These E2F-1 transfectants, although resistant to fluoropyrimidines and serum deprivation, were more sensitive to etoposide, doxorubicin, and SN38 (the active metabolite of irinotecan) but not to Taxol.

Oxidative stress and antioxidant status in cardiovascular diseases in population of western Nepal.

OBJECTIVES: To observe if there is any connectivity between oxidative stress and cardiovascular diseases (CVDs). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Patients suffering from different cardiovascular diseases (hypertension, ischemic heart disease, rheumatic heart disease) attending Manipal Teaching Hospital, Pokhara and strictly matched controls were selected for this study. Oxidative stress (OS) was measured by plasma thiobarbituric acid reacting substances (TBARS) where as antioxidant status was measured by estimating vitamin E, vitamin C and total antioxidant activity (TAA) in plasma. RESULTS: The mean level of TBARS, TAA, vitamin C and E were 2.20+0.43 nmol/ml, 547+98 mol/l, 0.88+0.15 mg/dl and 0.75+0.20 mg/dl respectively in patients. The respective values in controls were 1.86+0.43 nmol/ml, 859+139 mol/l, 0.94+0.15 mg/dl and 1.10+0.30 mg/dl. Although the OS seems to be raised in patients, is practically insufficient to oxidize biomolecules and induce CVDs. Despite vitamin C and E levels being well within normal limits, the TAA was significantly and considerably lower in patients. This is a highly interesting observation suggesting that dietary antioxidants other than these vitamins were preferentially consumed to control OS because procedure for TAA used in this study practically measures only total dietary antioxidants. CONCLUSION: OS does not appear to be an etiological factor for the cardiovascular diseases; rather slightly raised OS in patients seems to be a consequence. Further the raised OS was not due to lower nutrient antioxidant (vit. C and vit. E) in the local population studied herein.

Vitamin C status in cancer patients and healthy subjects from the local population of Pokhara.

OBJECTIVES: To assess vitamin C status by determining plasma ascorbic acid level in 55 cancer patients and 55 matched normal subjects serving as control. METHODS: The proven cancer patients were selected from those attending Manipal Teaching Hospital, Pokhara. Matched controls were from the staff of Manipal Teaching Hospital or attendants of the patients. Plasma ascorbic acid was determined by the method of Natelson. Unpaired student 't' test was used for the statistical evaluation. Statistical analysis was done by SPSS version 9 software. RESULTS: The mean level of vitamin C in normal subjects and patients was 1.03+/-0.26 mg/dl and 0.90+/-0.30 mg/dl respectively. None of the subjects in either group had deficient status (<0.2 mg/dl). Although its status was normal in both the groups but patients had lower level than normal subjects. Smokers and alcohol consumers had significantly lower level than non-smoker and non-alcoholics. CONCLUSION: In the local population, vitamin C deficiency is not an etiologic factor in malignancy. Smoking and alcohol adversely affects the status of this vitamin.

Analysis of Health Facility Based Perinatal Verbal Autopsy of Electoral Constituency 2 of Arghakhanchi District, Nepal.

BACKGROUND: Verbal autopsy is a method to diagnose possible cause of death by analyzing factors associated with death through detailed questioning. This study is a part of the operational research program in electoral constituency no. 2 (EC 2) of Arghakhanchi district by MIRA and HealthRight International. METHODS: Two day essential newborn care training followed by one day perinatal verbal autopsy training and later one day refresher verbal autopsy training was given for health staff of EC 2 of Arghakhanchi district in two groups. Stillbirths of >22wks or > 500 gms and Early neonatal deaths (newborns died within7 days of life) were included in this study. The Nepal Government approved verbal autopsy forms were used for performing autopsies. Perinatal deaths were classified according to Wigglesworth's Classification. Causes of Perinatal deaths were analyzed. Data were analyzed in the form of frequencies and tabulation in SPSS 16 . RESULTS: There were 41 cases of perinatal deaths (PND) were identified. Among them, 37 PNDs were from Arghakhanchi district hospital, 2 PNDs from Thada PHC, and one PND each from Subarnakhal and Pokharathok HPs. Among the 41 PNDs, 26 were stillbirths (SB) and 15 were early neonatal deaths (ENND). The perinatal mortality rate (PMR) of Arghakhanchi district hospital was 32.2 per 1,000 births and neonatal mortality rate (NMR) was 9.8 per 1,000 live births. Out of 26 stillbirths, 54% (14) were fresh SBs and 46% (12) were macerated stillbirths. The most common cause of stillbirth was obstetric complications (47%) where as birth asphyxia (53%) was the commonest cause of ENND. According to Wigglesworth's classification of perinatal deaths, Group IV (40%) was the commonest cause in the health facilities. CONCLUSIONS: Obstetric complication was the commonest cause of stillbirth and birth asphyxia was the commonest cause of early neonatal death. This study highlighted the need for regular antenatal check-ups and proper intrapartum fetal monitoring with timely and appropriate intervention to reduce the incidence of stillbirths and intrauterine asphyxia.